What is a stroke?

A stroke is a medical emergency. It’s also a leading cause of serious, long-term disability.

A stroke occurs when blood flow to your brain stops or is blocked. Brain cells begin to die within minutes when deprived of oxygen and nutrients from blood. The longer the lack of oxygen continues, the greater the damage will be.

Strokes can cause permanent damage to your brain, including paralysis and loss of speech and memory. When you have a stroke, you may suddenly become weak on one side of your body or lose your ability to speak clearly or understand simple instructions. You may also have trouble seeing out of one eye or be unable to move one side of your body. A stroke can happen to anyone at any age — even children.

What causes a stroke?

Strokes can be caused by many different factors, including:

High blood pressure (hypertension). High blood pressure can cause arteries to narrow and harden, putting added stress on the heart. This increases the risk for blood clots that can break off and block vessels in the brain, causing a stroke.

Heart disease. Heart disease causes narrowing of arteries throughout the body, including those leading to the brain. This makes it more likely that a clot will form and travel to the brain, where it blocks blood flow to areas of tissue and causes damage or death to those cells.

Atrial fibrillation (irregular heartbeat). In this condition, there are irregular electrical impulses in your heart’s upper chambers (atria), making your heart beat too fast or too slowly. The irregular heartbeat can cause blood clots that travel through the bloodstream and lodge in brain vessels – causing a stroke.

Diabetes mellitus (diabetes). People with diabetes have higher rates of hypertension than those without diabetes; they also have a higher risk for atrial fibrillation and heart disease, which puts them at increased risk for strokes as well as other cardiovascular problems.

What are the signs of a stroke?

Stroke symptoms vary depending on where in the brain the stroke occurs, but most people who experience a stroke have one or more warning signs before it happens. The warning signs for a stroke include:

• Sudden numbness or weakness of the face, arm or leg, especially on one side of the body
• Sudden confusion, trouble speaking or understanding speech
• Sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes
• Sudden problems with walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination
• Sudden severe headache with no known cause

How can you prevent a stroke?

The most important thing you can do is to have a healthy lifestyle.

Here are some tips on how you can prevent a stroke:

Eat a healthy diet. Eat foods that are rich in nutrients, such as fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Limit your intake of fat and sugar.

Maintain a healthy weight by eating right and exercising regularly. Being overweight increases your risk of high blood pressure, diabetes and heart disease, all of which raise your risk for stroke.

Don’t smoke or use tobacco products; they increase your risk for heart disease, the leading cause of stroke. If you’re addicted to nicotine, talk with your doctor about ways to quit smoking and other tobacco products.

Drink alcohol only in moderation — no more than two drinks per day for men or one drink per day for women — if you drink at all. Alcohol raises blood pressure and affects clotting ability, both of which may increase your risk for stroke or worsen an existing condition that puts you at higher risk for stroke.

Control high blood pressure (hypertension) by treating it with medication prescribed by your doctor if necessary or making lifestyle changes such as eating better and getting more exercise (see above).

What does a stroke feel like?

The symptoms of a stroke depend on which part of your brain is affected by lack of blood flow. The most common symptom of a stroke is sudden weakness or paralysis, usually on one side of the body. Other possible symptoms include:

• Sudden confusion or trouble speaking
• Numbness or tingling on one side of your face or body
• Dizziness, loss of balance and coordination (ataxia)
• Vision problems such as double vision or blurred vision

What is heat stroke?

Heat stroke is a potentially fatal condition that occurs when the body is no longer able to cool itself properly. The body’s temperature regulation system fails, causing the body temperature to rise rapidly. Untreated heat stroke can lead to brain damage, kidney failure, and death.

Most cases of heat stroke occur in hot weather with high humidity. Other risk factors include alcohol consumption, certain medications, and certain underlying conditions such as diabetes or heart disease.

Symptoms include headache, nausea, confusion, fatigue and dizziness. Heat cramps are common in early stages of heat stroke, but later stages may have delirium and seizures.

What is a mini stroke?

A mini stroke, also called a transient ischemic attack (TIA), is often called a warning sign of a full-blown stroke. It happens when blood flow to part of the brain stops for a short period of time — usually less than five minutes. A mini stroke can cause problems with thinking and movement temporarily, but it doesn’t cause lasting damage.

Mini strokes can have many causes, including:

• Blood clots in an artery going to your brain
• A spasm in one of the arteries that supply blood to your brain
• A leakage from an artery (also called an “artery dissection”)
• Risk factors for a mini stroke include high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes.

Can stress cause a stroke?

Stress can trigger a stroke in people who are at high risk for having one. But it’s still unclear whether stress can cause a stroke in people who have no other risk factors.

People who have had a stroke may also be more likely to experience recurrent strokes. This is true for people with heart disease, too: About half of people who experience a heart attack will have another one within five years.

Stress and Stroke

Can stress cause a stroke? It’s possible, but the link between the two is unclear. Some studies suggest that stress may increase your risk of stroke, while others show no connection between them.

Stress can be defined as any event or situation that causes mental discomfort or tension — such as an argument, financial problems or divorce proceedings — and results in physical changes such as increased heart rate and blood pressure as well as changes in hormone levels and immune system function. These physical responses are known as the “fight-or-flight” response because they prepare us to face danger by increasing our energy supply for action.

How to Treat Stroke?

If you have symptoms of stroke, call 911 right away. Don’t drive yourself or someone else to the hospital, because you may have another stroke along the way.

Treatments for stroke depend on how severe it is and what caused it. Stroke care usually includes:

Medications to thin blood and reduce clotting (blood thinners). These are usually started within 24 hours following a stroke, if needed. Examples include warfarin (Coumadin), aspirin and clopidogrel (Plavix).

Antiplatelet therapy with aspirin or clopidogrel (Plavix) for people who’ve had an ischemic stroke within the past 7 days or who are at high risk for another stroke because they’ve had a transient ischemic attack (TIA).

Blood pressure control through medications if needed. High blood pressure increases risk of another stroke.

Physical therapy to regain strength in affected muscles and movement skills such as walking and balance.

How do you treat hemorrhagic stroke?

Hemorrhagic strokes are caused by bleeding in or around the brain. They are usually caused by an aneurysm or a rupture of a weakened blood vessel in the brain.

There are different types of hemorrhagic stroke. The most common types are:

Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). This is located within the brain tissue itself and can be subcortical (occurring near the surface) or cortical (occurring deeper in the brain). ICH is a serious condition that requires emergency treatment. It can lead to permanent disability or death if not treated quickly and correctly.

Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). This occurs when blood leaks out of one of the arteries that carries blood to your brain (the arteries that supply blood to the outer layers of your brain). It can cause bleeding into your skull and severe headaches right after it happens.

Stroke Clinical Trials

Stroke research is focused on preventing stroke and recovering from it as quickly as possible. The goal is to find ways to prevent or treat strokes before they happen so patients have a better outcome.

Stroke clinical trials test new treatments for stroke and other neurological conditions, including Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and multiple sclerosis. They also test devices that help people who have suffered strokes or other types of brain injury regain movement or mobility.